November in August

Kids, I’m totally becoming a fashion pro. Get this :
Saturday, in the middle of August, sauna-esque heat in New York, there I am, Gaga, heading out for a winter shopping mission.

So I’ll stop you right there. All the girls I take photos of during fashion weeks are gonna say, “Well, what’s the big deal? That’s normal as can be. You’re even a little late little one!”

Still, it’s hard for me to consider it normal to get to buy a wool jacket, cashmere pants and an angora scarf on the 28th of August. But I came across Dianna at Barneys who showed the big wool winter coat and the furry shoes she’d just bought and I finally gave in. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe this is the perfect time to buy a fur hat, you never know.

And I need a snowboard too. It’s definitely time to order my snowboard for February.

Okay… So back to me in huntress mode. Up to the fifth floor at Barney’s, Stella McCartney, finally, ah, awesome. I love her collection. I see the coolest parka, perfect for a snowy January. I try it on, oh goodness, it’s so beautiful, and then the salesgirl corners me and says :

“JUST SO YOU KNOW, THAT PARKA IS THE ONLY ONE IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. And we have it because (and yeah, I stopped being able to understand her here, she was talking so fast, so here’s what I imagined she said to me) – Stella knew that you were coming today and she designed it just for you – and so that’s why we’re the only people in the world to have one and it’s the last one, IN THE ENTIRE WORLD.”

Whoa. How cool is that? The only one, IN THE WORLD. But as Scott wasn’t quite convinced by the salesgirl he told me Garance, look, if it really was made just for you, come back in three days and it’ll be here waiting for you. I listened to him because honestly, he’s a really smart guy and the parka was really close to $2,000.

So we continued our little journey down Madison Ave, following intently my little list of to-buys that I concocted – First time in my life I’ve ever done that. But now I have this new fear of waiting until it’s cold to buy a coat and then hear the salesgirls all laugh at me saying, A coat? In September. We don’t have any more of those since August, ahahah*!

On my list, there were some pointy ballet slippers… with studs, from Valentino. Kids, if you haven’t been living under a rock, then I’m sure you haven’t missed them. They’re in all the magazines, ALL OF THEM. So I went to Valentino and asked for them, and this is what I got:

The ballet slippers? The ones in all the editorials? Ahahah*, they haven’t gotten here yet, and we’ve already got a waiting-list longer than you can ever imagine.

Ah yes, I forgot. Get it published in a magazine and sales go through the roof.

Pfffff. To console myself, I stopped at Intermix, a New York multi-brand shop. I saw an entire section of Stella McCartney and, you’re not going to believe me, but I’m not kidding here :

Three other parkas just like my parka that couldn’t be found anywhere else IN THE ENTIRE WORLD.

…

I let out a yelp, I grabbed it and then poof! No longer did I have any desire to buy it. The fact that it wasn’t at all unique (but what was that salesgirl at Barney’s thinking?)(Wait… Maybe she WASN’T a salesgirl at Barney’s… Ouuuh, craaazyyy.) made it – almost – a little dull.

And there you have it! I tried to get myself together and become a killer fashion pro, but I’m still trapped in the endless cycle of supply and demand. Scott winked at me.

Ahahah*! I still have many miles to go before I’m a fashion pro.

———–

PS 1 (No, not the bag. You’re all obsessed.) = This post has no rhyme or reason, at the beginning, I wanted to give you my point of view on the back to school trends, but yeah, maybe next time…

PS 2 = Don’t worry, I got a lot of pretty things. 80% of them I won’t be able to put on before November, but they’re pretty none the less, and all lined up nicely in my closet. You could even say it looks like a shop — a little chaotic, the shop.

PS 3 = New York Zara is terrible. It’s hard to get over it’s European cousin. And harder on my wallet, too, seeing as I have to live with Chloé now. Pfff! Depressing…

damn, for a former european you are a bit late! you know how seasons change in central europe and how harsh they can be :) it’s the last day of august and we’re freezing over here! too bad about Zara though :)

Hahah. This post made me laugh so much!! I did show it to my male colleagues but they don’t get it :)! Sometimes I feel like I am hypnotized at those shops.. they are so professional at convincing you to buy!! And they use all kinds of tricks :) !
The good thing about leaving in London is that it’s actually so cold here that you feel compelled to buy winter clothes anyway.
Good luck in New York!

Hahah. This post made me laugh so much!! I did show it to my male colleagues but they don’t get it :)! Sometimes I feel like I am hypnotized at those shops.. they are so professional at convincing you to buy!! And they use all kinds of tricks ?!
The good thing about leaving in London is that it’s actually so cold here that you feel compelled to buy winter cloths anyway.
Good luck in New York!

On the hottest day of late July, I was shrugging on my new shearling-lined leather vest! Love it, but as I’ll be on a sea island near Savannah, GA until the end of October, I won’t wear it for three months after I’ve bought it! (Got it at Elizabeth Charles on Hudson near Horatio–you’ll love this little shop!). Also, check out Jeffreys. They don’t carry as much of any designer as Barneys, but the sales people are wonderful and often succeed in tracking down hard-to-find items. One more thing about NYC…as soon as you put away the last of your summer clothes, we’ll have a heat wave!

Hahah! I loved this post. Don’t you just hate the psychology of shopping? Like, if something is in the sale and you try it on but you know you wouldn’t have even looked at it at full-price, so you can’t love it THAT much, so why are you trying it on now? OR if there’s only one of something left in the shop (or in the ENTIRE WORLD) sometimes you consider buying it just because you don’t want someone else to have it, even if you don’t really want it yourself. It baffles me.

And I have bought a few winter things already. I like them at the moment, but by the time it comes round to being cold enough to actually wear them, I will probably have changed my mind. Alas, that’s the risk we take with winter shopping in August.

Anyway, glad to have you back, Garance. Super happy for you to be living in New York (slash super jealous). Can’t wait for autumnal tales from NYC.

haha , Garance your posts always make my day :D u see, sometimes it’s good to go shopping with men (although most of times it’s too stressful for us and for them) and good that u r slowly getting used to live in NYC, good luck with this :D
xoxo
Judy

What an exciting life indeed! Scott is very wise: never buy something that expensive on an impulse – unless you already know you’ll be keeping it for long! I never buy on first seeing a piece. I always wait at least that I have seen it twice.

I’m used to buying my Winter clothes mid-Summer. Nordstroms did a whole pre-season anniversary sale where all items (even Winter coats) were around 50% off, and after the sale they would go to full price.

Ahh yes, I’ve come to realize this exact same thing over the past couple of weeks… Here is my question though: which average woman (even if she earns relatively well) has the money to purchase her ENTIRE fall/winter wardrobe with one month’s salary right after the holidays (which probably set her back enough as it is…)?! Impossible!

This is a weird transition time for sure, it’s still sunny out and yet it’s the best time to get ahead of the curve and buy fall things! I’m compiling a little list and will be hitting up the shops soon.

Hello! I’ve recently started following your blog. It’s lovely and feels very real, very true.

I have also started to make a shopping list and am trying my hardest to stick to it. I even bought a small notebook for that purpose. Every time I think something is missing from my closet, I jot it down and when I go shopping I keep an eye out for it. It is one way I keep track my spending and make sure that I am buying something I’ve thought about for a while. Or else I might regret it.

I can tell you, it already feels like fall here in England (the skies are still blue but it is chil-ly!!) so suddenly all I can think about is getting warm and stocking my cupboards for winter (i’m like a squirrel, but with boots and jackets). And I still have memories of last year where I left my coat buying until I was freezing in October (i’d moved from Australia where there is no need for such things as coats..pah!) and then was running around like a madwoman trying to find ‘the One’, when of course htey had all already sold in September!

I love reading your NY cultural experiences, nail care, shopping. The interaction is extremely interesting to hear and what your perspectives are. Please write more.
I live in Canada and when I travel to the US I do remember some of the exact same comments I get from my shopping experiences at Barneys (NY,LA, Vegas), Saks etc.
I love how you interpret it! Thank you for sharing.

Oh, how true is this anecdote? You want something when it is incredibly rare, and then you figure out that once you can actually get it, you don’t want it anymore. And also, yes, you have to buy coats in July or August, and when you actually need them, the shops are only stocked with swimsuits. It is absolutely ridiculous.

Everyone can sympathise with you about nasty/and or lying sales assistants! Good advice from Scott – take three days to think about a big discretionary purchase and look around some more. I’m a bit surprised that designers aren’t giving you big discounts or samples as you have such a large and devoted following who look to you for advice.

2.000 $ for a parka ? This better have been one hell of a parka, yo ! Anyway, it’s good to be ready for the coming nor’easters and blizzards and random snowpiles that would stop high heels in their tracks while their owners land face-first into the drift.

Speaking of weather boots, though, have you checked out Tommy Hilfiger’s thigh-high et high-heel rain boots ? They could be the way to go for you this winter, and they don’t cost 2.000 $ either. :-)

The only thing i’m feeling surprised about is that i always thought saleassits in the brand shops (like Stella’s) are a kind of moveless and speechless dolls, looking at you from above… and could never imagine they come down till the games like “the only one, made specially for you”… really, reminds me an easter bazaar with their carpets and all other stuff))
(went across all off- and online Chanel shops looking for the Khaki-Rose nail polishes, not found yet… damn, i need it!)

There is something magical that happens when a girl takes refuge from the scorching August heat and enters the cool sanctity of a store to “just look at” sweaters and coats and scarves — and if that store is Barneys, the girl stand NO chance of leaving empty handed.
Why don’t you take a photo of your closet and show off your new purchases?!

* Ahahah ! Stupid bitch. ————> I loved that! U should totally post a post (?) about how UBER BITCHY some sales woman are!!!
Horrible to say, but sometimes I feel like telling them “do u really feel cooler than me because I’m spending half an hour to decide if I really like this $500 dollars shooes?! look at yourself, u’re a sales woman!”

Garance! You and New York are two things I hold near and dear to my heart. You IN in New York is a dream come true hahah… Reading Madison Avenua and Barney’s in your posts is like music to my ears. I think I love you :)

You are so right! Since when is it unreasonable to buy winter stuff in the winter? This is crazy! And I fall for it every time, off course. So I try to be as prepared as possible!!?!!! (like this is ever possible)

I thought I was the only person that started shopping really early this year. I bought several sweaters/jackets this summer, wool trousers from Vivienne Westwood (she makes the best trousers) and I pre-ordered my coat from Oak. It sounds silly but I feel like I’m prepared for winter. Finally!

I’ve been reading your blog so much recently. It makes me laugh so much, especially your entries on New York as I’ve done a couple finance internships there and I never thought about how crazy the culture seems.

hey! just to let you know, the Soho zara is terrible, but if you go uptown to the 5th ave one its very close in stock to the Zaras I just visited in Spain, and much larger than any of the downtown locations. It shouldn’t be that way, as Soho is most important to their market but alas…